The N Kiran Kumar Reddy government on Friday flatly denied that there were any ‘covert’ Ministers in the state Cabinet as alleged by a section of the media recently.

“There is no scope as such,” Minister for Rural Development Dokka Manikya Varaprasada Rao told media persons at the Secretariat on Friday.

On the other hand, the Minister made a claim that those in the Cabinet were expected to toe the line of the party High Command. “They are supposed to be loyal,” maintained Mr Varaprasada Rao.

The Ministers who took the Oath of Office were expected to discharge their duties as per the direction of Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy, the Minister emphasised.

Referring to the comments that “I am one of the coverts” as allegedly stated by Transport Minister Botsa Satyanarayana at a press conference on Thursday, Mr Varaprasada Rao went on to clarify that what he said was untrue.“ His comment was full of sarcasm”, said the Minister for Rural Development.

“Never did Mr Satyanarayana work for YSR Congress Party president YS Jaganmohan Reddy, nor would he ever do such a thing,” asserted Mr Varaprasada Rao, adding that the former was one of the senior Ministers who discharged his duties to the advantage of the government always.

“He camped in the Kadapa district and relentlessly campaigned for Congress nominee in the recent by-elections D L Ravindra Reddy till the last day,” the Minster said, referring to Mr Satyanarayana.

Commenting on the functioning of Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy, the Rural Development Minister specifically mentioned that the former was rather ‘encouraging’ the Ministers always for yield of best of the results.

In essence, the Minister made it clear that there were no differences among the Cabinet members. The Chief Minister himself was discharging his duties to the best of his abilities even as a ‘captain’ of the team, Mr Varaprasada Rao asserted.

Further commenting on the visit of Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad recently, it was once again made clear that party functionaries, Legislators and Ministers met him separately. It was an opportunity for both sides – the Central representative and the local leaders to have a ‘dialogue’.

Mr Ghulam Nabi Azad too tried to elicit individual opinions from the local leaders on various subjects including the Telangana’ issue, party affairs, Seemandhra and integrated state among others, Mr Varaprasada Rao pointed out.